Iona 90, Loyola-Maryland 86
Senior guard Lamont Jones scored 34 points, helping Iona surprise second-place Loyola-Maryland 90-86 in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game Friday at the Hynes Athletics Center in New Rochelle, N.Y.
Senior forward Taaj Ridley added 15 points and sophomore forward David Laury had 14 for Iona (16-13, 10-7 MAAC), which had lost three in a row and six of seven.
Senior forward Erik Etherly had 23 points and 10 rebounds for Loyola-Maryland (20-10, 11-6 MAAC), which fell a game back of first-place Niagara. Senior guard Robert Olson also scored 23 points.
The Gaels went ahead 25-14 when Jones hit a jumper with 10:30 to go in the opening half, but Loyola-Maryland mounted an 11-2 run over the next 3:42 to cut the deficit to two. The Greyhounds finally tied the game when Olson made a 3-pointer with nine seconds to play in the half.
The teams exchanged leads early in the second half before Iona staged a 12-4 run to go up 80-70 with 2:13 to go. Jones sparked the run, scoring 10 consecutive points over a span of 1:34.
The Greyhounds cut the lead to four in the final minute, but the Gaels held on for the win.
